Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1887-04-19
te cal,coSter Jtttelliaerier.
LANCASTER, APRIL IA 1881.
The Explanstlsn.

y n intef-state commission has made
80 exposition Of the law and Of its duty
- it. It declares that its adjudication
- only be sought upon actual cases of
wEong doing alleged against the railroads,
- that it cannot be called upon for opin-
NJ upon suppositious cases. 1t, however.
polnts out the wrongs which the law
yoaches, and declares that they are the
0ms which are redressed by the ancient
common law, the present statute being
made necessary simply by the nullification
q TIE common law, long practiced by the
Sailroads and permitted by the legislatures
md Judges. 1t became necessary to tie
hack 1t the ancient moorings, and Congress
% declared; enacting the law creating this
commission, and confding it to them to
~ that no unjust discrimination should
( b made between places and individuals in
railroad charges; and that is all that the
law prohibits. All its sections are intended
70 secure reasonable charges and to prevent
unjust discrimination.
A. the commission pointedly declares,
any difficulty in carrying out this law will
only show that there has been wide de.
parture upon the side Of the railroads from
the principles Of justice in their charges
and their treatment Of their customers
since nothing but such justice is re.
quired by the law, it will be com.
mauded by the commissioners under it..
The commission says to railroad managers
that the act wholly fails to justify them in
embarrassing business and stagnating
trade, by " sticking in the back" of the
phraaes Of the Law, and pretending that
tneySse tsss6 ttss6 to punishment for their
violation when 1t is clear that no harm
can como TO them in an honest and intelli.
gent undertaking to execute the laws.
4 /" Good faith, !" says the commission " will
involve reasonable and fsir-minded officials
In no danger of damages or fnes." The law
shows An obvious purpose not to bind rail-
road managers within strict lines, but leaves
them to their own practices providing only
that they are fair and honest. Railroad man
ayers who are troubled by the law acknowl-
edge their natural inaptitude in honest and
fair practice. They have been so long
going crooked that they find trouble in
walking straight. They have 50 long con-
templated freight rates with an eye single
to their pockets that they cannot trust
themselves to regard them as charges need.
ing TO be levied equitably upon the public
~ well as profitably to themselves.
Perhaps they do not really have the
trouble which they pretend to have in dis
covering the path which the new law
points out to them. Perhaps they are
more mischievious than stupid. In either
case the Information they now have from
thecommission will be interesting to them.
Referring to the railroads disposition to
Q construction Of the law which will EN-.
bayrass business, the commission declares
that Its powers " are entirely adequate to
cope with such conduct ;" since " the same
statute which enacts that charges for like
service shall be uniform to all also provides
that charges in every case and for every
kind and class of service shall be reasonable
and just"
To do that the railroads freight rate max
en- will understand that it will not suffice
that they make long haul cost more than
short haul and impose the same charge
upon all men. They must also be sure that
their charges are not too high or too low
to answer the test Of fairness and Of justice
70 the trade of the country. In fine, the
railroad manager is commanded and com.
mended by the law to justice and fairness,
and the commission proposes to see that
he learns the novel lesson with speed and
completeness.